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Hey guys, this is my first post and I wish it was under better circumstances. I JUST purchased a 2004 325Ci 5-speed from a reputable BMW dealership and am having problems already . She drove perfectly on the test drive and all the way home, but now she knows she has been paid for and wants to act up LOL.

I am getting a loud CLUNK/CLICK noise that sounds as if the drive shaft was hitting something underneath my car. Its coming from underneath my armrest when it is under acceleration and especially going up a hill. From the mid to high end of 1st gear and into low to mid of the 2nd gear it really knocks pretty noticeably. It doesn't happen at very high speeds nor RPMs. WHAT IS IT?

I just bought this thing and LOVE the car, but being that it is my first BMW, I am lost.

I WANT to be a BMW guy, I hope you guys have some good news so I can stay here and not go back to my Nissan forums

Could be one or more of the following:
Motor mounts
Trans mounts
Giubo ("Flex Disc")
Driveshaft center bearing
Diff bushing

Is this a pretty common occurrence on these cars? I have found a few threads that have talked about it but the OP never really says what the problem was in the end. Just trying to get my facts straight before I go hunting down BMW salesmen and/or driveshaft mechanics

Is this a pretty common occurrence on these cars? I have found a few threads that have talked about it but the OP never really says what the problem was in the end. Just trying to get my facts straight before I go hunting down BMW salesmen and/or driveshaft mechanics

All those which Bob mentioned are some typical things which need to be changed once in a while. Not exactly big problem, just normal.

Problem it would be if checking all those, and it wasn't one of those causing the sound.

If you just bought it, bring it back and make them fix it. If you start working on it, or bring it to another shop, any leverage, or recourse you have will be lost.

The dealership is over 200 miles away so bringing it back and letting it sit will be a feat all in itself. I need to get it in the air to see whats going on first before i start throwing the "L-word" at them. (Starts with L and rhyms with "Yemon")

The dealership is over 200 miles away so bringing it back and letting it sit will be a feat all in itself. I need to get it in the air to see whats going on first before i start throwing the "L-word" at them. (Starts with L and rhyms with "Yemon")

You're going to start threatening them with the lemon law on a nine year old car when they haven't even attempted to fix it yet? Usually, for the lemon law to apply they have to have attempted to fix the same problem a few times and failed, and usually it only applies to newer cars. I think that you might get further with them if you started out in a less adversarial way.

You're going to start threatening them with the lemon law on a nine year old car when they haven't even attempted to fix it yet? Usually, for the lemon law to apply they have to have attempted to fix the same problem a few times and failed, and usually it only applies to newer cars. I think that you might get further with them if you started out in a less adversarial way.

I didn't mean to come off very serious with that comment. I don't know the ins nor outs about the lemon laws so I wont pretend I do. It was just a passing notion is all...

Well I got it up in the air and turns out that its the center support bearing. Took a good grip of the front drive shaft and shook it, center support gave way pretty well. Heard some clunking behind the exhaust shield. Front joint held together no problem though. No movement at all on the side going into the transmission.

Took a look at the rear diff to see if the rear driveshaft was moving and it wasn't, so its got to be the center bearing. Parts are on the way for it and im trying to hunt down the BMW salesman that sold it to me to see what he can do about it, but I have a feeling this will be coming out of pocket since it is used and so old.

... im trying to hunt down the BMW salesman that sold it to me to see what he can do about it, but I have a feeling this will be coming out of pocket since it is used and so old.

Around here, they have to be very clear about if you are buying a car that is "as is" or if it has some warranty. If "as-is" and they didn't deliberately cover up a problem, then you are out of luck. Of course, they will sometimes still do something as a good will gesture, if they made enough profit off the sale.

Well I got it up in the air and turns out that its the center support bearing. Took a good grip of the front drive shaft and shook it, center support gave way pretty well. Heard some clunking behind the exhaust shield. Front joint held together no problem though. No movement at all on the side going into the transmission.

Took a look at the rear diff to see if the rear driveshaft was moving and it wasn't, so its got to be the center bearing. Parts are on the way for it and im trying to hunt down the BMW salesman that sold it to me to see what he can do about it, but I have a feeling this will be coming out of pocket since it is used and so old.

I hope that you are planning to replace the "guibo" while you are in there. Same amount of work, don't go back in later, etc. etc.

Plenty of DIY instructions on the net, I'm sure; Bentley manual is also helpful. The biggest hassle with this job is getting the exhaust off, with all its decade-old rusty fasteners. Get new manifold flange gasket and new copper nuts and be prepared to use a torch to heat the old nuts to get them off without breaking the studs in manifold. At the rear, figure out whether it is easier to drop the exhaust bracket from the body or leave it there and drop the exhaust from the bracket, depending on what part has the most rusted fasteners. Remember to mark the two parts of the driveshaft for re-assembly alignment and to pre-load the new center bearing mount slightly forward from its free position.

Well I finally got in touch with the dealership. My salesman wouldn't return any of my phone calls so I went to the sales manager for used cars. I explained to her my situation and pretty much just asked what the protocol was, if any. I explained I wasn't looking for a hand out nor a free car, after all it is used, but if there was anything they could do. Especially considering it began acting up on the ride home from the dealership and could do some serious damage if it wasn't fixed very quickly.

She told me, as I already knew, that they couldn't go about fixing all their customers used cars. I told her that it was worth asking just to see if maybe there was some hidden clause that they do certan work with X days of unknown issues or whatever (100% shot in the dark)

After it was all said and done, she actually offered me a $250 dollar credit towards parts/labor/service at their dealership whenever I need it within the next 6 months

I couldn't believe I was getting anything out of my situation and was very thankful for it.

Got the parts in today, and it'll be fixed by a local shop tomorrow for ~600 bucks (parts labor and a few other touch ups to the car that need tweaking). I appreciate everyone's help and hope to be a long time member that can repay all the good info I got.